Release Day Launch & Review: Whatever Life Throws At You by Julie Cross

We are so excited to bring you the Release Day Launch for Julie Cross' WHATEVER LIFE THROWS AT YOU! WHATEVER LIFE THROWS AT YOU is a Young Adult Contemporary Romance, published by Entangled Teen!! Stick around to read my review (5 STARS), a really awesome excerpt (involving an almost naked Jason Brody!), and a giveaway for 3 signed copies of WLTAY (open US/CAN only, sorry internationals :( ).

Seventeen-year-old Annie Lucas's life is completely upended the moment her dad returns to the major leagues as the new pitching coach for the Kansas City Royals. Now she's living in Missouri (too cold), attending an all-girls school (no boys), and navigating the strange world of professional sports. But Annie has dreams of her own—most of which involve placing first at every track meet…and one starring the Royals' super-hot rookie pitcher.But nineteen-year-old Jason Brody is completely, utterly, and totally off-limits. Besides, her dad would kill them both several times over. Not to mention Brody has something of a past, and his fan club is filled with C-cupped models, not smart-mouthed high school “brats” who can run the pants off every player on the team. Annie has enough on her plate without taking their friendship to the next level. The last thing she should be doing is falling in love.But baseball isn't just a game. It's life. And sometimes, it can break your heart…

*The Reader's Review*

My rating: 5/5 stars!

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤!!!!!!!!!

No words, no words people to express how amazingly cute and fantastic Whatever Life Throws at You is. It's the must read to make you feel all the feeeeels. If you love contemporary novels, then my dear friends, you must get this book TODAY.

First, I demand to know where I can find a Jason Brody for myself! I can't close my eyes without seeing him inside my eyelids. I do homework, Jason Brody. I eat cereal, Jason Brody. I run a few miles, JASON BRODY. This perfect being has stolen my heart and won't let go. I loved his personality, his determination to be a good person, his respect for the people who were willing to help him, and of course, his tenderness towards Annie. I can't forget how gorgeous and incredibly talented he is when it comes to pitching in baseball. Seriously, I'm in love with this character. Annie was a wonderful, fun character as well, can't wait for you all to meet her!

But okay, okay back to the book. Whatever Life Throws at You is a seriously awesome book about love, friendship, loyalty , and determination. It's about fighting hard to get what you want without losing yourself in the process and how some of your actions, while apparently innocent, can have consequences.

This book has a lot of Baseball and track running involved, and while I'm not a very sportsy person, I enjoyed reading about these subjects. The excitement and true fan personalities each character had got me so excited, I started investigating and watching more baseball games. You bet I'm going to one soon.

Anyway, the best thing about Whatever LifeThrows At You were the relationships, hands down. And, I'm not talking only about Annie and Jason, but of Annie's relationship with her father, her grandmother, Jason with Annie's father, and so on. They were really sweet and realistic, and I loved how everyone was so supportive of each other. With that being said, this is were all the drama truly comes from because, despite their solid relationships, when you break their trust, things can get ... tough.

But of course, there are lots and lots of other stuff inside this gem of a book that I'm pretty sure many will come to love. Like, for example, how author Julie Cross could have made much more drama than what we get, yet decided not to. I was expecting many other twists and I was pleasantly surprised when they didn't happen. This book moves on realistically, and that I liked.

I strongly suggest you should drop whatever you are doing right now and go get this book immediately. If there is one book you should read this year, then it should definitely be Whatever Life Throws At You. I mean, who wouldn't want to read a well written contemporary romance with the hottest (and sweetest) baseball rookie you can ever find? I know I would. ;)*Thanks go out to the publisher for providing me with an eARC of WLTaY via Netgalley in exchange for en honest review.*

Whatever Life Throws at You by Julie Cross Excerpt:

He eyes me skeptically. “What kind of article?”

“It’s for Sports Illustrated,” I say without hesitation and then quickly realize that I don’t look nearly old enough to be a real reporter for a huge publication. “I’m an intern,” I add.

The skepticism falls from his face and he looks nervous, which gives me a boost of confidence. I walk closer and pull out the chair in front of the locker beside his, propping my feet up on the bench across from me. “Frank Steadman said you’d be willing to answer a few questions.”

His mouth falls open, and he looks down at his towel and then back at me. Water drips from his hair and off his dark shoulders. “Um…okay,” he says. “Mind if I get dressed first?”

I wave off his concerns, my face heating up, blowing my confident cover. But him getting dressed might allow enough time for Dad to return, and I’d rather not have to deal with that. I duck my head down, letting my hair hide my cheeks and flip open the first page of the notebook. “This will just take a minute… So, you’re nineteen? And you’re from Texas?”

“Chicago,” he corrects.

I had no idea where he was from but figured it sounded better if I pretended to know. I write down this information and then search my brain for some more questions. “Does the wind in Chicago affect your curveball? Do you throw into it or against it?”

I take my time writing orange in really big loopy cursive while I think of my next question. “What are your opinions on sushi?”

His forehead wrinkles like I’ve just asked him to publicly declare a political party. “Raw fish and seaweed? I think it’s best eaten while stranded on a desert island with no other options.”

“Very diplomatic.” I scribble down his answer. “How many strikes have you thrown in your career?”

“Don’t know,” he says. “Do people actually count that stuff? Before the majors?”

“Some of them do,” I say, though I have no idea. “If you could be any magical creature in the Harry Potter series, which would you choose?”

“You said this is for Sports Illustrated, right?”

“Yeees, But it’s the…kids’ edition.”

“Oh, right.” He scratches the back of his head. “I guess maybe one of those elves.”

“A house elf? Seriously? They’re slaves.” I shake my head. “Why would you want to be an enslaved elf? They can’t even wear clothes.”

He grips his towel tighter and releases a frustrated breath. “Fine, I’ll choose an owl. That’s what I’d want to be.”

I snort back a laugh and drop my eyes to the page again.

“What? What the hell’s wrong with being an owl? They’re smart, they know geography and shit like that.”

“Owls in real life are actually pretty stupid. But no big deal, I’ll just relay that message on to the children of America. Jason Brody, temporary Royals pitcher, wants to be an owl when he grows up because they know geography and shit like that.”

Okay, I’m getting way too into this fake reporter role.

“Who says this is temporary?” he snaps.

“Your two-way contract.” Isn’t that how Dad explained it? He plays a few games then goes back to Triple-A, all without signing a real major league contract.

He yanks a pair of jeans from his locker and then grabs a bundled up orange T-shirt. “Well, I plan on kicking some ass on Opening Day and making this a permanent gig.”

“I think you need a reality check,” I say. “One game isn’t going to be enough--”

“Annie, what the hell are you doing?”

I leap off the bench and turn around to face Dad and Frank standing about five feet from me. “Introducing myself to your new pitcher.”

“Brody, what are you doing here, son?” Frank asks. “We’re off today.”

“Just getting in some cardio and weights.” His gaze darts from me to Dad to Frank. “I was just finishing up this interview for Sports Illustrated. The kids’ edition.”

“Well, we won’t keep you from getting your clothes back on, then,” Frank says, like he’s trying not to laugh. “And just for future reference, all interviews will go through the team’s publicity department so no one will be wandering in here, surprising you. Savannah will meet with you tomorrow to discuss publicity.”

Julie Cross lives in Central Illinois with her husband and three children. She’s a former gymnast and longtime gymnastics fan, coach, and former gymnastics program director with the YMCA. She’s a lover of books, devouring several novels a week, especially in the young adult and new adult genres. Outside of her reading and writing credentials, Julie is a committed—but not talented—long-distance runner, creator of imaginary beach vacations, Midwest bipolar-weather survivor, and expired CPR certification card holder, as well as a ponytail and gym-shoe addict.